Coin controlled liquid dispensing device



Dec. 13, 1932. P. KRAusE COIN CONTROLLED LIQUID DISPENSING DEVICE FiledJune 1'7,l 1929 Dec. 13, 1932. p, KRAUSE 1,890,616

COIN CONTROLLED LIQUID DISPENSING DEVICE Filed June 17, 1929 2Shee'cs--Sheel 2 IIIIIlII Patented Dec. 13, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENToFFlcE PAUL KBAUSE, F BABYLON, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR, BY DIRECT AND MESNEASSIGN- DIENTS, 0F PART INTERESTS T0 WILLIAM E. SPRAGUE AND HARRYTAYIQB', BOTH l 0F BABYLON, NEW YORK; LUCY A. SPRAGUE .ADMINISTRATRIX 0FSAID WILLIAM E.

SPRAGUE, DECEASED COIN CONTROLLED LIQUID DISPENSING DEVICE Applicationmed June 17,

This invention relates to coin controlled liquid dispensing devices andin particular to a device from which gasoline may be drawn by theinsertion of suitable coins of any de- .5 nomination to purchase aneeded amount of gasoline.

A still further and equally important object of my invention is toprovide a coin controlled mechanism which affects the operation of thepump or dispensing device and permits the discharge of an amount ofgasoline or liquid in accordance with the number of coins placed in thevarious slots of the device.

A still further particular object of my invention is to provide a liquiddispensing device which will indicate when the contents thereof has beenemptied and which will also prevent insertion of a coin in the slot atsuch time. It Will be further noted that I have provided a dispensingdevice which automatically loads its auxiliary'tank and automaticallycuts off the feed to the auxiliary tank from the main supply tank whensaid auxiliary tank overflows.

In automatic dispensing devices, I have provided a device which may beplaced at the roadside and which does not need the attention of anattendant, the device being coin controlled, coin operated and beingWholly automatic in its operation to reject coins and lock itself when acomplete purchase has been made. My device is also fool-proof, has fewmechanical parts and its operation is positive and the discharge of theliquid content is made accurately.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, which will appear as thedescription proceeds, the invention resides in the combination andarrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafterdescribed and claimed, it being understood that changes in the preciseembodiment of the invention herein disclosed may be made within thescope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of theinvention.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a view in elevation, the same r being shown in section toillustrate the oper- "0 ating parts of my dispensing device.

1929. Serial No. 371,459.

Figure 2 is a view in cross section, taken substantially on the line 2-2of Figure 1 and further illustrates the relative arrangement of theparts.

Figure 3 is a view in front elevation of the ratchet or feed bar Whosemovement determines the amount of liquid discharged from the dispensingdevice.

Flgure 4 is a top plan view of the feed member illustrated in Figure 3.Figure 5 is a view in sectional elevation of the main supply tank andits control medium.

Flgure 6 is a top plan view of one of the operatmg levers.

Figure 7 is a top plan view of another one 65 of the operating leverswhich constitute the hook upon which the end of the discharge hose ornozzle is supported.

Figure 8 is a view in perspective of the float operated locking deviceand indicator.

Figure 9 is a section taken on the line 9 9 of Figure 1.

Figure 10 is a diagrammatic view of a circult used in my pump, andshowing the arrangement of the switches, lights and motor.

Referring to the drawings in detail, number 1 1s a hose nozzle at theend of the usual flexible hose 1--A through the medium of which theliquid may be dispensed. The nozzle 1s provided with a suitable hook andwhen the nozzle is removed from the hook lever 2, the spring 3 connectedto the lever moves the latter upwardly, which, in turn, releases thelever 4 whose upper end is normally in engagement with the fixed pin 4-Aand Whose lower end 4-B overlies the end of the lever 5. The lever 4 isnormaly urged against the pin 4--A through the medium of the spring 4-C,the upward movement of the freed lever 2 consequently removing the pin4A from the path of the lever 4 and permitting operation of the latter.The lever 4 is' limited in its counter clockwise movement by a suitablestop 4S so that its upper end is in the path of the pin 4-A on return oflever 2. After the lower end 4-B of the lever 4 moves out of the path ofthe end of the lever or operator 5, its free end is urged upwardly bythe action of the spring 5-B with the result that it no longer overliesthe lever 6 and the spring 6-A secured thereto throws the lever 6 out ofthe path of the coin slot lock 7 to permit coins to be inserted throughthe coin mouth 8 and to be deposited in the coin chute 9.

The slot lock 7 is provided with the counterweight 7-C to normally keepthe lock closed.

When the hose nozzle 1 has been inserted into the receiving container orthe gas tank of an automobile or other vehicle, the coin slot lock 7operates automatically and permits coins to be inserted into the coinslots 8 from whence they drop down the coin chute 9 and into contactwith the ratchet finger 10. The coin chute 9 is provided with aprotruding portion 9-A over which the coins, indicated by the numeral14, ride, it of course being understood that there is a coin chute foreach of the various denominations of coins that may be used in themachine, namely, fifty cents, twenty-five cents, ten cents and tivecents and each of the coin chutes are provided with a respective ratchetfinger or operating member 10 which is pivoted to the lever 12 as at10-A, and is provided with the coin cut-out 10--B into which rolls thecoin when it is deposited in the coin chute.

l'nasmuch as the operation of a single coin will be sufiicient toillust-rate h ow the machine would operate when any particular coin wasinserted. a single coin chute and its companion ratchet lever 10 will beonly referred to. After a coin has been inserted into the coin chute 9and rides down to the position -illustratedin Figure 1, the hand lever11 which is pivoted to the bracket 11A is moved downwardly and throughthe medium of the link 13 which is connected thereto and lever .12, itmoves the ratchet linger down so that the coin is engaged within thecoin cutout 10-13 of the ratchet finger. The offset portion of the coinchute 9 however, is in the way of the vertical movement ofthe coin afterit has been engaged by the lever 10 and the result is that the lever 10is urged toward the right, in Figure 1 and its hooked end 10-C isbrought into engagement with the teeth 15-A of the serrated operator 15.with the result that the operator 15 is drawn down and causes delivervof the liquid as will be hereinafter described.

After the ratchet or operating bar 15 is pulled downwardly by theratchet finger 10 through the action of a hand lever 11 and itsconnecting part, a distance determined by the length of the offset 9-Ain the coin chute 9 and by the travel of the hand lever 11 and the coinhas passed the offset portion 9A of the chute, it drops out ofengagement with the ratchet finger 10 and through the coin chute intothe coin box 16. As the coin passes the offset 9-A of the coin chute anddrops out of enga ement with the ratchet finger 10, the latter, terefore, becomes free to move and isurged to its original, verticalposition by the spring 18 which, with its companion spring 17, engagethe opposite side of the lower end of the ratchet fin er 10 or leveradjacent its pivot point land normally maintain it in an uprightposition.

The hand lever 11 must be pulled down its entire travel before it can bereturned either by hand or by the spring 25 to its starting osition, thespring connecting the lever 12 wlth the stationary bracket 11-A, asillust-rated. To insure the full travel of the hand lever 11 and toprevent return thereof to its starting position before the pull strokeis completed, a ratchet dog 24 is pivoted to the lever 11. The lower endot the ratchet dog is arranged tovbe tripped by the sto 26 when the handlever 11 completes its fu l downward stroke. As the ratchet dog 24 istripped by the stop 26, the ratchet is forced in a clock-wise directionand out of engagement with the ratchet teeth 24-A which are disposed onthe interior wall of the casing adjacent the slot therein through whichthe hand lever operates. It is not believed that it is necessary toillustrate the slot in the casing which is designated by the numeral -A,it being suflicient to note that the spring 27 which presses against theupper part of the dog 24 will keep it normally in engagement with theteeth 24A so that upon a downward movement of the lever 11, the dog willratchet over the teeth and will prevent retractile movement of the lever11.

Upon a movement clockwise of the dog 24 occasioned by its contact withthe stop 26, the ratchet spring 27 which is provided with a. hooked endengages in the notch 24--B and normally maintains the rack engaging endof the ratchet out of contact with the rack piece, thereby permittingfree return of the lever 11 to its normal position. Upon its return toits starting position, the upper end of the ratchet 24 comes intocontact with the stop 28 and is pushed out of engagement with the hookformed on the end of the ratchet spring 27, the spring bearing againstthe upper end of the dog 24 to normally force it into the positionillustrated in Figure 1.

The reason for providing means whereby full travel of the hand lever 11is ensured, is to insure the dropping of the coin out of engagement withthe ratchet finger or lever and into the coin box 16; also, to insurethe deliverance of the full amount of liquid for the inserted coins andalso to prevent the hand lever 11 to be half strokes which might movethe operator downwardly and cause liquid to be delivered in excess ofthe purchase value of the inserted coins'.

In order that the liquid may be discharged, the upper end of the-ratchetbar 15 or operator is adjustably connected to the discharge tube 19through the medium of the threaded extensions 15-B which en ages withinthe lower threaded end of sai tube 19. The

worked up and down at` upper end of the discharge tube 19 passes throughthe bottom 21-A of a liquid chamber 21 in which the gasoline or liquidto be discharged is housed, this chamber constituting what might betermed an auxiliary chamber from which the liquid is directly dispensed.The top ofthe discharge tube 19 is level with the liquid in the chamber21 and upon being moved downwardly by the action of the hand lever, asdescribed, an amount of liquid equal to the value of the coin or coinsinserted into the coin slot, is discharged. As the discharge tube 19 islowered and brought below the liquid level in chamber 21, the liquidenters the discharge tube 19 and runs through the latter and out throughthe opening 19-A therein and into the chamber 22 or cylinder and fromsaid cylinder 22, the liquid runs into the pipe 23 which is suitablysecured to the lower portion of the cylinder 22 and leads the liquidtherefrom to the discharge tube 1--A and out through the nozzle 1.

It will be noted that the tube 19 is plugged as at 19-B directly belowthe opening 19-A so that the liquid will of course, run throughthe-opening 19-Aand into the cylinder 22. The discharge tube 19 passesthrough suitable stuiiing boxes 19-C. one of which is disposed in thelower wall of the auxiliary chamber 21 and one of the stuiiing boxesbeing also provided in each end of the cylinder 22 so that leakage ofthe liquid about the tube 19 is prevented.

As the operator bar 15 starts its downward movement, it engages the armor lever 32--A of the motor switch 32 and in its downward movement,breaks the motor circuit in the switch and as the arm of the switch 32is connected to the motor switch 33, it moves at the same time the arm33-A of the motor switch 33 and closes a circuit. The circuit indicatedby the wiring 33-B, therefore, has two switches in it, that is, 32 and33, but in the present instance, as described, the motor switch is openin switch 32 and is closed in switch 33. The switches being wired inseries, makes it necessary that both switches be in contact before themotor 35 can operate.

As the hook lever 2 is pulled down at its hook end, the other endtravels up and at the upwardly moving end is connected to the operatorbar 15 through the medium of the link 52, whose lower end engages theextension 20 of the operator bar 15; the ratchet bar or operator 15 isreturned to its starting position and consequently in its return orupward movement, the lower end of the operator bar 15 again makescontact with the lever of switch 32, this lever being indicated by thenumeral 32-A but this movement does not operate the switch lever 33-Adue to the selfadjusting connecting link 71 which connects the switchlever 32-A and 33-A. This adjustable link consists of a sleeve 71-A andwhich have relative, sliding rela- As the governor 38 pulls one end ofthe lenl ver 39 downwardly, the other end of the lever goes up and lwithit, the rod 40 which is attached thereto by a pivot pin arrange! ment.The upper end of the rod 40 is arranged for free sliding movement in thesleeve 53, the latter being secured for pivotal movement to the coinslot lock lever 5-A which, as illustrated in Figure 6, is secured to thelever rod or shaft 5-C to which is also secured the lever 5. If the rod40 moves upwardly which is caused bythe action of the governor, thelever 5 is moved downwardly at its front or left hand end, as seen inFigure 1, and bears on the ledge 6-B which is formed in the lever 6 andthe lever 6 is moved so that its lower end overlies the coin slot lockmember which, as noted, is pivoted in the upper end ofthe coinreceptacle and is substantially L-shaped, the depending portion thereofwhich carries the counterweight 7--C at all times blockng the passage orcoin slot 8. The insertion of coins, of course, prevents he operation ofthe automat while the motor 35 and pump 36 are working during which timethe supply chamber 21 is being filled by the pump 36 through the supplypipe 44.

As soon as the chamber 21 is iilled to its proper level which isdetermined by overflow pipe 41, the liquid in excess of the proper levelruns down the overflow pipe 41 and into a cup 42 which is providedwithin a suitable housing 42-A, see Figure 1. As this cup 42 is beingfilled by the overflow, the

added weight of the liquid, forces the cup 42 down and does so againstthe action of the spring 43 which is secured at one end to the end ofthe lever 34 which is pivoted in a suitable extension of the casing 42-Awhich carres at one of its ends, the cup 42, the spring at its oppositeends being secured in any suitable manner so that it will normally holdthe cup in its raised position. When the cup is lowered, the lever 34,moves upwardly at its outer end and into contact with the lever 33-A ofthe swtch 33, stopping the motor and therewith the action of thegovernor 38, which, in turn, returns the lever 39 to its neutralposition and releases the coin slot lock arm 5 and lever 6 thusunlocking the coin slot 7 and returning the automat to its normaloperating condition.

pass by the It will be noted that cup 42 has a small hole in the bottomthereof which ermits the liquid to drain out slowly after t e cup hasbeen moved downwardly or otherwise operated and after the cup is empty,the spring 43 will move the cup through the medium of the lever 34 toits raised or normal empty position. The cup 42 is rovided with.suitable uides on its side an consequently does not t snugly into thechamber 42-A wherein it travels. The space between the outside wall ofthe cup 42 and the inside wall of the chamber 42-A are provided topermit the surplus of liquid after the cup 42 is filled, to cup 42 andthrough the overiow pipe to return to the main supply tank indicated bythe numeral 41-C.

The motor 35 is housed in a chamber 35-B closed o from the remainder ofthe mechanism in the casing, the chamber 35-B being vented to theoutside of the casing 5-E through the medium of `the vent 35-0 formed inthe side wall of said casing. The purpose of the vent, of course, is toprevent any gases, if inflammable, from becoming ignited in the eventthat liquid is dispensed which gives off a gas which is inflammable. Thesame precaution is present in the operation of the switches and in theirconstruction, they all being practically air-tight housings to preventgases from being ignited by sparks caused by the operation of theswitches, the switch arms beng disposed outside of the switch while thecontact arms and contacts are inside of the switch housings. Theseconstructions are well known and it is not believed that the detaileddescription of the switches is necessary.

In order that the hand lever 11 may be controlled in its operation inboth directions, use 1s made of adjustable stops 55 which are carried inthe brackets -A which also support the members 26 and 28 respectively.The supply pipe 44 which is disposed behind the pipe 41 is turned overon its upper end, this turned over end being provided so that thesplashing is prevented when liquid is forced into the chamber 21.

As the rack or operat'ng bar 15 is moved downward, the coin slot lockbar 29 which is attached to or formed integral with the operator 15moves downwardly therewith. On

this lock bar 29 there is provided a cam face 30 which comes intocontact with the rocker arm 31 pushing thel latter down on one end andup on the other, the end that is moving up coming into contact with thelever 6 pushing the lever over the con slot lock 7 to prevent theinsertion of additional coins when the ratchet bar has been moveddownward to draw with it, the pipe 19 to cause discharge of the liquid,the coin slot, of course, being locked during such discharge.

As the hose nozzle is hung up on the hook lever 2, the coin slot lock isoperated by the pin 4-A on the hook lever 2 coming into contact with thelever 4, the latter of course depressing arm 5 which, in turn, bears onlever 6 through the medium of the shelf -B formed on said lever 6 tothereby force the end of the lever 6 over the coin slot lock 7, thuspreventing insertion of the coins and o eration of the automat beforethe hose 1 1s removed from the hook lever to be inserted into thecontainer where the liquid is to be fed. The hook lever 2 must bereleased and in its upward position before the coin or'coins can beinserted into the coin slot. Link 52 which is attached to the hook lever2 moves downward freely through the slot in the extension 20 of the bar15 but does not move the rack bar in its downward travel but upon thereplacement of the hose nozzle on the hook lever 2, the upward movementof the link 52 through the medium of the pin in its lower end, takes upthe rack bar 15 wherever itmay be on its downward travel and returns itto its starting position.

On the supply pipe 44, there is attached, a reservoir or cylinder 45which is connected to the supply pipe 44 through the small pipe 44-Aleading downwardly from the-bottom of the cylinder and it will beevident during a fill'ng operation that the cylinder 45 is filled to thesame level with liquid as the supply pipe 44. Within the cylinder 45there is disposed, a freely moving float 46 which is connected to thecoin slot lock arm 5 through the medium of a link 48, arm 49 and rod 50,the later having a slotted end which permits the arm 5 to be operatedalso by other mechanism as long as the float 46 mechanism isinoperative. The purpose of the cylinder 45 and its associated oat 46together with its connected mechanism is to shut ofi'l the motor 35which operates pump 36 if the main supply tank from which the pump 36pumps the liquid into the chamber 21, becomes empty. The level of liquidin the supply pipe 44 and consequently in cylinder or oat chamber 45 ismaintained by the check in the pump 36 to which the supply pipe 44 isconnected. As long' as the pump operates to supply liquid but when themain supply tank ecomes empty, the pump will be operating on air and theliquid in the supply pipe will work back through the pump check valvewhen the latter is working when the main supply tank becomes empty andair enters the pump chamber.

As the level of l'quid drops in the supply pipe 44, it consequentlydrops in the float chamber 45 and the float 46 drops and moves rod 50upwardly and also the arm 5 which locks the coin slot 7 through thelever 6 and the rod 50 also operates the switch 45 to break the motorcircuit with the result that the motor stops operating, it being againpointed out that all the motor switches are connected in series and allof the switches must be closed for the motor to work. As the rod 50moves the armof switch 45 and breaks the motor circuit, the samemovement makes or closes the empty light circuit to illuminate the bulbs51, the bulbs beinfr disposed in the upper compartment l-- in which isprovided an indicating sign arranged to be illuminated to indicate whenthe tank is empty. In the wall of the casing 5-E, there is provided ahand throw switch 58 which is arranged to light the regular night lights56 and 57 but it 1s to be understood that these lights may be operatedby a time switch disposed at any point in the casing.

In order that an auxiliary means may be provided to cut olf the motor35, lock the coin slot and light the empty light, I have provided amechanism which carries out these features and also shows the-amount ofliquid in the main supply tank. This mechanism consists of a tube ofsmall diameter, paralleling the suction pipe 54 and indicated by thenumeral 54-A which houses a Bowden wire, 54-B, which at its upper end isconnected to a rack 59 which travels in the housing 60 and is arrangedto operate the gear 61. This gear 61 is mounted on a shaft 61-A which isjournalled in the housing 60 and which carries exteriorly of the housinga cam 62 which moves with the gear when the latter is moved by the rack59. The cam 62 moves upwardly upon a downward movement of the rackcaused by a downward pull on the Bowden wire, whose lower end isattached to a slide 41-B housed in the sleeve portion 41-D of the mainsupply tank 41-C. The lower end of the slide I1-B through the me- -diumof a. link 41-F is connected to the pivoted float arm 41-H which carriesat its free end, the float 4l-J. The level of the liquid in the mainsupply tank, of course, will determine the position of the float which,in turn, will determine the position of the rack 59 which is normallyurged upward through the medium of the spring 60-A which acts againstthe lower enlarged end 60-B of the rack 59. From this enlarged portion60-B, there extends a pin to the outer side of the housing 60 which isarranged to engage the arm or lever of a switch 63. A movement of therack portion GO-B downwardly moves the switch in order to break themotor circuit and at the `same time complete the Empty light circuit. Onthe end of the shaft 61-A, I also provide an indicating device 61-0which may be extended to one side of the casing and housed within a suitable receptacle so that the base of the dial is visible from theexterior of the casing. The indicating device is of the conventionaldesign and operation and it is not believed that its mechanism need bedescribed.

It will be noted that rod 40 is loosely movable at its upper end in thesleeve 53 which in turn is pivoted to the arm 5-A, this permittin thearm 5-A to operate freely, inv depen entl of the rod 40. The upper endof the disc arge tube 19 is substantlally on alevel with the upper endof the overfiow pipe 41 and to prevent any overflow into the dischargepipe or tube 19, a plunger is provided whichis indicated by the numeral64 which normally seals the discharge tube 19, the plunger 64 beingadjustable and being so closely adjusted that the tube 19 frees itselftherefrom by the slightest downward movement. The member disposed in thetank 2l is a displacement member, the purpose being to vary the capacityof the tank 21 so that a greater or less movement of the emptying tube19 will be required in order to dispense a certain amount of liquid. Ahousing 80 is provided through which passes the rod 50, the housing atits upperend being disposed well above the ordinary level of the liquidin the tank 21.

If desired, I may provide a plurality of tanks 21 and a plurality ofsliding supply tubes or discharge tubes, each draining their ownseparate chamber which may contain dierent liquids; for instance, as ina supply fountain for mixed drinks, in which a number of different kindsof drinks might be dispcnsed through the use of the mechanism described.

It is evident, therefore, that I have provided a new and improved liquiddispensing pump which has few parts, whose operation is positive andwhich is easily operated and fool-proof.

It is also evident that I have provided a liquid dispensing pump whoseelectrical control maintains the supply tank full so that the dispensingoperation is carried out with a minimum of time and effort, the partsbeing so arranged that successive operation thereof takes place onlyafter the filling tube has been removed from its supporting hook andwhen the proper coins have been inserted in their proper coin slot.

It is evident alsothat a device of the character referred to may beplaced on highways at spots remote from town and may be operated at anytime to supply liquid fuel to motorists or to supply liquid in any form,for instance, for drinking purposes, where desired.

While I have illustrated and described my invention with some degree ofparticularity, I realize that in practice various alterations thereinmay be made Without departing from the spirit of the invention or thescope of the appended claims.

1. A liquid dispensing mechanism comprising a supply tan a pipe in thesupply tank, an overflow` receptacle associated with the tank, a motor,a pump, a motor circuit, switches controlling the circuit, a pipesupport, and coin controlled means for moving the support to controldischarge of the liquid through the pipe and operation of the switches,and means operable by the receptacle for opening the motor circult.

2. In a liquld dispensing machine, a serrated operatlng member, a hookmember, a coin passage constituting a chamber in which the hook memberis disposed and closes one Bide thereof, means-for o rating the hookmember to move a coin, an means in the coin slot for positioning a cointo force the hook into ement with the operating member, when tlie hookmember is operated.

3. In a liquid discharge machine, a supnly tank, a pipe movable thereinto permit ischarge of the tank contents, a frame to which the pipe isadjustably secured, a coin chute, a frame operating member disposed inthe coin chute, a lever for moving said operating member and the coinand an offset in the coin chute for causing a coin to move saidoperating lever into contact with the frame.

4. In a liquid dispensing machine, a motor circuit, a control switch inthe circuit, a liquid tank, a pum driven by the motor for supplying thetank, a coin, controlled dispensin pipe 1n the tankL movable to dispenseliquid and actuate the control switch to complete the circuit, anoverflow pipe leading from the tank, a de ressible receptacle in thepipe for catching t e overflow l1 uid, and a ever operated by a movementof t e receptacle to operate the control switch, to break the circuit.

5. In a device of the character described, a dischar member, a lever forsupporting one end o the discharge member, a serrated operating member,a hooked lever for engaging in sald serrated member, a hand lever foroperatingxsaid hooked member to move the serrated member in onedirection, a coin chute having an oiset therein and through which saidhooked lever operates, said lever bein moved into engagement with theserrate member by a coin in the chute, and a connection between thesupporting lever and the serrated member forvmoving the latter in the oposite direction.

6. A quid dispensing mechanism comprising a supply tank, a pipe movablein the supply tank to permit discharge of the tank contents, coincontrolled means for moving the pipe including a hand lever, a coinchute, an offset portion in the chute, a hooked lever and a serratedmember with which said hooked lever engages when a coin is ositionedbetween the offset portion an the hooked lever, a link connecting thehooked lever and the hand lever, a rack adjacent the hand lever, and arack engaging member carried by the hand lever for preventing retractilemovement of the handle short of a full xplerating stroke.

7. a liquid dispensing machine, a supply tank, a tank supply pipe, apipe movable name to this specification, this 4th day ofA June, 1929.

PAUL KRAUSE [1.. 5.]

